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vol xiii.--thirb series salisbury n c may 4 1882 ko 29 the carolina watchman behind minerva's shield homer ashton one autumn evening listened to stories of witches and ghosts told around him and joined in them until he felt an occasional shiv er creeping down his back not that he believed i,n the supernatural but the firelight into which he sat look ing grew pleasanter to him than the corners of the great room for lamps had been banished to accord with the subject under discussion and it seem ed i hat the shadows flickering behind the young people grouped about the grate of blazing coal were massive and weired and that when one glanc ed at t liens sideways suddenly there was something about them like gl'ost ly visitors when he faced them to be sure they were only ordinary shadows homer was ashamed of himself he was afraid his nerves were unsteady and resolved to test them he knew a way to test them he knew a way to do it near the place at which he was staying an english country house were the ruins of the older part of a castle said to have ween built in the time of the crusades the whole cas tle was at present uninhabited but the part which had been allowed to fall into hopeless decay was the width of the courtyard away from the rest of the house probably it had once been connected with it by build ings which had formed three sides of a hollow square but if so it had been left out in the changes made at differ ent times and now it was roofless the walls were crumbled and the under ground portion was all that made any pretense to a habitation and offered a suitable home to the unearthly beings who were said to roam in it for a dampness covered all the stones and the air had a deadly chill but these facts seemed conclusions from the na ture of things rather than the results of observation for homer could not find anybody who had explored it ghosts ought really to be forgiven a good many faults because they are in general so unselfish about select ing homes nobody else wants that evening as ashton connected the reports of the place itself with sto ries of sights and sounds around it he found himself yielding so much to the influence of gossip that he deter mined to shake off the weakness and to try what stuff he was made of he would stand in those haunted halls and summon the ghosfs and see what would happen he knew well enough that it would be nothing but he did not tell his plan to the others ; he said merely that he was go ing for a walk to blow away this ghostly atmosphere by a little fresh air no-body volunteered to accom pany him night had never been more distasteful to them all they only looked at each other significantly as he left them and said : another americanism . there is an unreasoning element in human nature which assumes every individuality of a foreigner to be a national characteristic dr ashton whom the son of the house had become acquainted with in london and bro't home with him for a visit was to his entertainers an epitome of america and it must be confessed that at the end of a week they had come to have a good opiniou of that country as homer walked on rapidly he saw an occasional star in the sky but it seemed as if he never could get out of the shadow of the trees there were so many of them he soon came to the ruin a mile away opened the heavy gate and be gan to descend the long flight of steps leading into the corordors and rooms underground what could the old place have been used for did monks come here for prayers and penances or were these dungeons where cap tives taken in the petty warfare of those times felt the personal vengeance of their captors he thought of the one described in ivanhoe into which isaac the jew was thrown damp dark hung with chains and shackles and where in the ring of one set of fetters were two moldering hu man bones it was no wonder ghosts were said to haunt a place like that in the midst of these thoughts the gate he had left open swung to with a clang shutting out earthly things behind him step by step he went down the stone stairs into blackness to which the night outside va6 twi light sometimes he seemed to hear a sound but when he stopped to listen it was the beating of his heart when he reached the foot of the stairs he still went on ; every now and then his outstretcched hands struck against a wall or pillar for lie was passing though an arched hall that ended in a narrow passage lie next entei i what he thought must be a large room for the air had an indefinable differ ence ami the blackness seemed that of space instead of substance as he stood there uncertain which way to move and the very echo of his foot steps ceased the horror of darkness and silence which had been growing upon him reached its height he tried to utter his challenge but his dry lips would give forth no sound an abyss of night seemed to swallow him up suddenly he fancied he heard a movement he thought that something i like palpable blackness flitted about j him he turned to fly and took a lew hurried steps in the direction of the entrance then he stopped it was no ghostly presence that arrested him but the iron hand of his resolu tion ; he had come here to do a cer tain thing and was not to be cowed by a feeling of which he would be ashamed to own to himself in the day light he faced about ami went for ward quickly a few steps if there is any ghoat let him now appear he called loudly the dreary walls answered his crj with a dull reverberation with arms folded he stood a mo ment â€” the hardest thing of all to do â€” awaiting results if there had not been a roar in his ears if the beating of his heart had not made even his vision unsteady he would have said that he heard subdued laughter or moaning it was impossible to tell which as the sound rolled toward him from the hollow sides and that he saw something like a whiteness in the distance while a sense of presence made him cold with horror he had done all he had resolved to do and was free now to get out of this dreadful place he hurried toward the entrance urged on by the unrea soning sense of pursuit that comes over one when he turns his back up on danger all at once he lost his footing and lay at full length on the slippery floor the shock however only jarred and bewildered him as he put out his hands to rise he touch ed something from which lie drew back instantly with a stifled exclama tion ; he thought it must be one of the reptiles likely to be crawling in this den but he recollected that it was small and hard perhaps it was a curious stone which would prove his night's excursion if the strangers he was with should be tempted to doubt it after a little groping he found it again ; it felt like a stone covered with slimy moisture and putting it into his pocket he made his way out of the ruins as best he could when he returned to the house his friend was alone waiting for him and sleepy as homer could see consequently a trifle annoyed at be ing kept up so late the guest said nothing that night of where he had been in his room he took out the stone it was not a pebble or a piece of the pavetreut as he had supposed but an oval of grayish lava that had once been a brooch or part of a bracelet as he cleaned it with his penknife and pocket handkerchief he saw that the work upon it was beautiful ; it was a iigure of minerva the very folds in her tunic carefully cut and as he saw by his magnify ing-glass with a light tracery of carving on her helmet and shield on the opposite side just un der the shield was the word violet it was evidently the ower's name but who was she where did she live and when ? the pÂ»n if it were a pin had not lain in its last hiding place long he thought it was not enough stained by the dampness yet he was not sure about that violet might belong to a former generation or might have been sleeping the sleep of the just for a century but sup j pose not suppose she were a young lady beautiful as her name wealthy and high-born well what then homer put out his light and went to bed but not immediately to sleep the affair seemed to promise an ad venture as such it would have been interesting to any young person but ashton in addition to being barely twenty-five had been obliged to make his way for the last ten years ; for though h was of good family dame fortune had started ife with no more than one of . ; ; : ies which however every tiin ra lu turns it as in the legend leaves a gold piece in his hand tiie next morning but one a tall young man with dark hair and eyes ; and expression amused yet resolute ' handed in his card at grantham hall and asked to see its owner sir gres ham laud dr homer ashton cried sir ; gresham looking up from his let ters displeased at the interruption who's he i don't know any such person beryl to the servant what does he look like as well sir gresham only spyer oh spryer is he in his header i his heels i wonder well i sup j pose i must see what the fellow wants one of those genteel sponges come to suck up as many pounds as i'll give to their deuced charities he muttered by which speech it is fair to conclude that sir gresham had been sponged in this way more than once but when homer who was admiring the view from the drawing-room window turned and bowed as the baronet approached sir gresham per ceived nothing of the suppliant about him and began to doubt whether this elegant stranger did mean to make him a few pounds the poorer by his visit he came forward and reques ted his visitor to be seated ashton spoke of the beauty of the country and sir gresham answered him but at the moment curiosity was evident ly his ruling passion you are wondering why i came said homer certainly it was not to tell you what everybody knows that this is the finest situation about here but i have in my possession part of an ornament which i believe be longs to miss laud you what is it ashton bowed and smiled also as he handed the other his discovery of the night but one before does it be long to your daughter lie said but sir gresham was too bewilder to answer him that he cried good heavens ! that where did you find it it's a clew a clew to what ?' cried homer eafrerlv he felt on the brink of dis covering how a lady's ornament could come iu so strange a place but sir gresham was too excited by some suggestion awakened by the sight of the stone to have an idea of trying to satisfy any curiosity but his own where did you find it he re peated is it your daughter's returned homer yes it must be hers and remem bering at last to thank the young man for returning it he stood with the stone in his hand waiting impatiently for a full account of its recovery dues sir gresham laud suppose that i came here for the purpose of telling a midnight adventure to him thought homer a a look of amuse ment flitted across his face if you will be so kind he answered suave ly as to ask miss laud if she will do me the favor to identify her orna ment i shall be most happy to tell you and ask her if she cares to know how i came by it sir gresham hesitated only an in stant assuredly h said and sent for his daughter the young man's heart beat faster at the sound of light steps behind him suppose violet were plain and heavy looking yet suppose â€” he turn ed hastily but not too soon for the beautiful face that was coming to ward him she was named for her eyes thought homer and there was something else lie thought too that could no more than this be spoken at the moment she greeted him with a simplicity that charmed him ; but when she saw the medallion in her father's hand she cried : oh papa my bracelet clasp ; ; where did you get it ? have they ; found out the robbers horaer's eyes opened wide at her words robbers he repeated that's it then perhaps i really did hear i see something after all and after a moment in which three people stoovl facing each other with looks of in quiry he began an account of his ex peditiou to the ruin he was truth ful iu every detail yet the story sounded remarkably well as he told it watching violet's face and seeing her shiver and grow pale in imagin ing the blackness of the old cellars if she would but lo^e him for the dangers he had passed he knew nothing of wars to be sure except of personal struggles with misfortune lout of place to be told here yet hav iug left their mark upon him in a consciousness of power to dare and conquer adverse circumstances i've no doubt they carried their boo ty there exclaimed sir gresham his thoughts still in the ruins an infi nite distance behind the young man's winged fancy and supplementing the narrative which ashton had just finished while violet was listen ing to her father's account of a dar ing burglary committed the winter before while the family were in the house ashton had an opportunity to study her face more critically or rather more admiringly it was pos sible he did not drop all the admira tion out of bis expression as from time to time she turned to him to ex plain more fully something that her father was saying i've no doubt the villians bring their booty miles to hide it in the ruin said sir gresham this me dallion was the clasp of a heavy gold bracelet it was given to my daugh ter by a friend and she is much oblig ed to you i am sure for finding it indeed i am said violet color ing a little as she spoke it is i who am under obligation to fate answered homer ; i have found something that miss laud values the rest of the bracelet has been melted down long ago pursued sir gresham that pjace ought to be searched yes said homer when will you do it ?' the baronet looked somewhat ta ken aback at this energetic sugges tion no doubt he answered and per haps dr ashton you would like to be one of the party if i go with some of my neighbors i suppose it ought to be doue as soon as possible â€” within a day or two he went on as the oth er assented lest they should take alarm at your intrusion upon them when should you advise going this moment cried homer it's a wonder that we americans have any grass in our country he added smiling we are so averse to letting it grow under our feet he met violet's eyes as he finished and read in them an admiration and interest in another moment she had turned away on some trifling pretext but undoubtedly she was blushing how was homer to known that she had once declared she would marry the man who brought her back her bracelet clasp ? that however was when she wa3 quite sure it would never be found not until after luncheon papa will you she said you'd better not take dr ashtou until after that several years later when the me dallion had led to more than the finding of stores of plunder in the old ruins which a gang of thieves had taken care to make appear haunted homer ashton a physician of high standing was living in a large ameri can city a schoelraate whom he had not me for years said to him one day at dinner as they were talking of marriages and deaths among their comrades : by the way ashton you never told me where you first met your wife i only know that it was in england homer laughed i first met her he said behind minerva's shield did i not violet â€” oar continent later advices from eaglfi beak arizo na leave little doubt of the massacre of all the whites and a number of mexicans twenty persons are reported killed at san carlos a skeleton to sit at your banquet 9 ' ____ sax francisco april 26 â€” i a tucson dispatch says : at a meeting of the several thousand citi zens last evening it was unanimous ly decided that the following be iclc graphed as an open letter to the pres ident and his cabinet and to both houses of congress : during the re joicings incident to i he grand milita ry display announced to take place at fortress monroe thursday we beg to offer you a skeleton to sit at your banquet the fact that nearly one hun dred of our pioneers have within a few days been wantonly murdered in , cold blood by the devilish apaches whom a cruel and mistaken policy permits to survive their crimes if some small portion of the expenditure incurred in your grand display could be devoted to such measures as would precluded the probability of an in j crease in the list of our murdered ; dead we could send you greetings of gratitude and cheer in the place of : this message revealing our sorrow helplessness and our desolation sign i ed james ii toole chairman ; l c i hughes secretary killing of a convict news-observer yesterday morning about 10 o'clock nat hill and rufus holesclaw col ored members of a gang of convicts ! employed near the north carolina j railroad bridge south of the city at i tempted to make their escape when called on to halt holesclaw stopped but hill ran at his best speed a i guard whose name is johnston fired | on him and killed him at the first | shot the ball passing entirely through | his body just under the left shoulder ; blade and probably striking the heart he died as soon as he was hit hill was a negro aged 27 years and was from new hanover county his sentence was for six years his crime being larceny lie was placed j in the penitentiary in february last i it was learned yesterday by the au ] thorities that hill had told some of j the other convicts that he had made up his mind to escape and that if he was overtaken o::t>ide the walls lie would either g i away or be killed the proiiis of silk culture mr s a l:nier in an interesting ar i tide in the march number of the indus trial review on silk cui'.'ure as adapted i to the southern states make the fullow j idg statement of the profits that may we ; realized from cocoons the production of ; which will require inly a few weeks at j ten ion rach year : the following estimates will indicate i the profits of silk culture ami based np i on the actual experience f llio^o engag ed in the business one person can at tend to and feed 40,000 silk-worms al though two persons can very easily at tend to 120,000 forty thousand worms will in five or six weeks from the time they are hatched produce at least one hundred and twenty-five pounds of co coons worth from one dollar and one half to two and one-half depending upon the quality owing to the fact that the eggs raised in this country are t'vee from disease it wiil be profitable for many years t come to raise the eggs alone in 18/7 france paid over a million francs for eggs exported from the united slates with a climate especially adapt ed to silk culture and with a great abun dance of the silkworm food at nearly every door and with the fact established beyond any question of doubt that the business is profitable tin people arc blind to their own productive resources if they do not engage in it i lie business enables a class of people the ladies and i children to whom few avenues of em ployment are open to profitably employ their time and add no little to the income of the family we have the name of a lady who made over five hundred dollars last year in silk culture and we think this ought to cause every lady in the south to investigate the subject it is reported that a dialogue some what to the following effect took place between a spectator of the present politi cal trials and mr district attorney mel ton spectator why mr melton ifyou go on getting up your juries in tills way you would convict the apostle paul him self mr melton yes bur if i did not get them up in this way i could not convict judas iscariot this is very clever but it is open to the criticism that mr melton has reversed the old maxim of the common law and obviously thinks it better that eleven innocent men should be convicted than that one guilty one should escape charlatan keifsnndcmtr in dan tfostetfeir fl Â«* celebrated 91 a among ftp me â– ns of m i -â– â€¢. i â€¢-:â€¢ ri - hitters btaods . pre-eminent 1 â– â€¢â– ' â– ''â– â– ' - â– . liver and - tatti reme<ljescl : llv of the .> infi . â– i it 29:1 y /Â§ i " i rhodes bro .'. n ;.. t - . '.'.â– :. c a home company seeking home patronage stroi prompt rebake liferal terra policies ritten on : premiums parable ii huifcasli md bal uonths j allen brown a*t 21.h salisl : ry n c come at once john frick's celebeate1 grain cradles for sale at r r crawford & co's â– remember the dead ! \. monuments tombs ctreat reducticn ix the pricks of marbls monuments and grava-stones of every description i cordially invite tlic public generally to an inspection of my stock and work i feel justified in asserting tlial my past experience under lii.-t c!;i>n workmen in i!i the newest and modern styles and that the workmanship is eqnal to any of the best in tin country i <!<> not say tiiat my work is superior to all other i m:i reasonable will noi exaggerate in or der to accomplish a sale m endeavor is to please and give eacli customei tlie val ue of every dollar they leave with me prices 35 to 50 per ce:it cheaper than ever offered in this town before call ai once or send for price list and de signs satisfaction < uaraut'd or no charge the erection ol marble is the lasl work of respect which we pay to the meniory ot depai ted i iends john s hutchinson salihbnry n c nov i l~-l dldbillldl aiill liuiiilulkiuu attorneys counselors and solicitors salisbury n.c janoay22 1879 â€” tt mohit savidj^mphiy hadi : vi oea n ' hasnohoust at uor store rent tohirr tii can sell low gjio j l wkniut tor cheap sucuaabaeon lard i :â– â€¢â€¢â€¢, m lasses and s*j ruiÂ»s i i i â– . krults i mri eij j â€¢ l w r i c h t established in the yeab 1832 price 1.60 tn advance bt keqcest.j l,if in the south sch'ooliuates and friends if you will lis ten to me 1 will tell you of sights worth i sixpence to see my story originated in the far sunny south where the people are happy w flood or in drouth where t lie wild flowers grow from the mountains to the sea the laud of the brave and hie home of the free hut now to my story for i think it i time aud to add to tny glory i will tell it in i in me one night in december never miiid the date same farmers met at their school house in the old north state the oldest man of the number was called to preside : yoji would hare thought him a beecher lie looked so diynitied j th chief orator of the house was called to the tlihir and said the bjeet of the meeting was in defense of the poor in his eloqueut speech he tried tocxplain how his old woman had tried to raise ciiickeus but found il in vain he attributed the cause to the hawks and the owls which had become so numerous as to destroy all his fowls his wheat be said would be totally lost the ravage by rabbits was worse than by frost while the corn in the held never could grow rtfore it was up it was eaten by the crow the only true method of destroying the pests was to cut oft their heads and tear up their nests for this purpose they formed two bands to scalp every every hawk found upon their lands each company numbered fifteen strong and each hail a captain to lead them along the law affirmed that the company that wan brat oil the first day of new year had the other to treat then the armies disbanded each man to his post to fight for his captain against the ene my's host the ncÂ«ts were hunted from fir and from near â€” any time you would listen a gun you might hear they hunted at night as well as in day for they knew if beaten they had the for feit to pay the carnage was dreadful and so it is said that the rabbits awoke with no scalp for their heads on the first of new year at the dawn of day the fanners came in from most every way the scalps were then counted but i can't tell you the rest for they had enough to till the teacher's desk ; the teacher was angry but he said not a word of their doings on new year he had al ready heard the scalps remained in the desk day alter da.v and the pupils would laugh and have much to say until one little fellow more wicked than the rest was ordered to remove every scalp from the desk believe me or not i assure you tis a fact h carried out seventeen loads in liishnt and at last overcome by fatigue and by woe he measured himself full length in tlie snow but the school house was haunted i tell you tis true the victims assemble done night to see what they could do one offered the resolution and the vote passed around â€¢ and they unanimously agreed to burn the house down and on the ne^xt morn no house could bo found nothing but ashes lay scattered around ; and now eu<u ftiy story and i leave it with you to criticise as you wish but it cerlainlj is true jas w lynch llillsboro 111 high school jacksonville april 21 mr wood a sugar planter in cuba em ploying 5(k liands lias been examining into the ca pacity of forida lands for the production of sugar and is so well satisfied that ho announces his determination of removing bis entire plant to florida as soon as the okeechobee lands arc ready for cultiva tion he states that many cuban plan ters are watching the drainage scheme with a view to changing their places to florida if it is successful they will then avoid the enormous cuban t;ixes as well as the duties now levied on sugar it is worth remembering that nobody en joys the nicest surroundings if in bad health there are mserable people about to-day with one foot in the grave when a bottle of parker's ginger tonic would do them more good than all the doctors and medicines they have ever tried see adv cl3 xo is

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vol xiii.--thirb series salisbury n c may 4 1882 ko 29 the carolina watchman behind minerva's shield homer ashton one autumn evening listened to stories of witches and ghosts told around him and joined in them until he felt an occasional shiv er creeping down his back not that he believed i,n the supernatural but the firelight into which he sat look ing grew pleasanter to him than the corners of the great room for lamps had been banished to accord with the subject under discussion and it seem ed i hat the shadows flickering behind the young people grouped about the grate of blazing coal were massive and weired and that when one glanc ed at t liens sideways suddenly there was something about them like gl'ost ly visitors when he faced them to be sure they were only ordinary shadows homer was ashamed of himself he was afraid his nerves were unsteady and resolved to test them he knew a way to test them he knew a way to do it near the place at which he was staying an english country house were the ruins of the older part of a castle said to have ween built in the time of the crusades the whole cas tle was at present uninhabited but the part which had been allowed to fall into hopeless decay was the width of the courtyard away from the rest of the house probably it had once been connected with it by build ings which had formed three sides of a hollow square but if so it had been left out in the changes made at differ ent times and now it was roofless the walls were crumbled and the under ground portion was all that made any pretense to a habitation and offered a suitable home to the unearthly beings who were said to roam in it for a dampness covered all the stones and the air had a deadly chill but these facts seemed conclusions from the na ture of things rather than the results of observation for homer could not find anybody who had explored it ghosts ought really to be forgiven a good many faults because they are in general so unselfish about select ing homes nobody else wants that evening as ashton connected the reports of the place itself with sto ries of sights and sounds around it he found himself yielding so much to the influence of gossip that he deter mined to shake off the weakness and to try what stuff he was made of he would stand in those haunted halls and summon the ghosfs and see what would happen he knew well enough that it would be nothing but he did not tell his plan to the others ; he said merely that he was go ing for a walk to blow away this ghostly atmosphere by a little fresh air no-body volunteered to accom pany him night had never been more distasteful to them all they only looked at each other significantly as he left them and said : another americanism . there is an unreasoning element in human nature which assumes every individuality of a foreigner to be a national characteristic dr ashton whom the son of the house had become acquainted with in london and bro't home with him for a visit was to his entertainers an epitome of america and it must be confessed that at the end of a week they had come to have a good opiniou of that country as homer walked on rapidly he saw an occasional star in the sky but it seemed as if he never could get out of the shadow of the trees there were so many of them he soon came to the ruin a mile away opened the heavy gate and be gan to descend the long flight of steps leading into the corordors and rooms underground what could the old place have been used for did monks come here for prayers and penances or were these dungeons where cap tives taken in the petty warfare of those times felt the personal vengeance of their captors he thought of the one described in ivanhoe into which isaac the jew was thrown damp dark hung with chains and shackles and where in the ring of one set of fetters were two moldering hu man bones it was no wonder ghosts were said to haunt a place like that in the midst of these thoughts the gate he had left open swung to with a clang shutting out earthly things behind him step by step he went down the stone stairs into blackness to which the night outside va6 twi light sometimes he seemed to hear a sound but when he stopped to listen it was the beating of his heart when he reached the foot of the stairs he still went on ; every now and then his outstretcched hands struck against a wall or pillar for lie was passing though an arched hall that ended in a narrow passage lie next entei i what he thought must be a large room for the air had an indefinable differ ence ami the blackness seemed that of space instead of substance as he stood there uncertain which way to move and the very echo of his foot steps ceased the horror of darkness and silence which had been growing upon him reached its height he tried to utter his challenge but his dry lips would give forth no sound an abyss of night seemed to swallow him up suddenly he fancied he heard a movement he thought that something i like palpable blackness flitted about j him he turned to fly and took a lew hurried steps in the direction of the entrance then he stopped it was no ghostly presence that arrested him but the iron hand of his resolu tion ; he had come here to do a cer tain thing and was not to be cowed by a feeling of which he would be ashamed to own to himself in the day light he faced about ami went for ward quickly a few steps if there is any ghoat let him now appear he called loudly the dreary walls answered his crj with a dull reverberation with arms folded he stood a mo ment â€” the hardest thing of all to do â€” awaiting results if there had not been a roar in his ears if the beating of his heart had not made even his vision unsteady he would have said that he heard subdued laughter or moaning it was impossible to tell which as the sound rolled toward him from the hollow sides and that he saw something like a whiteness in the distance while a sense of presence made him cold with horror he had done all he had resolved to do and was free now to get out of this dreadful place he hurried toward the entrance urged on by the unrea soning sense of pursuit that comes over one when he turns his back up on danger all at once he lost his footing and lay at full length on the slippery floor the shock however only jarred and bewildered him as he put out his hands to rise he touch ed something from which lie drew back instantly with a stifled exclama tion ; he thought it must be one of the reptiles likely to be crawling in this den but he recollected that it was small and hard perhaps it was a curious stone which would prove his night's excursion if the strangers he was with should be tempted to doubt it after a little groping he found it again ; it felt like a stone covered with slimy moisture and putting it into his pocket he made his way out of the ruins as best he could when he returned to the house his friend was alone waiting for him and sleepy as homer could see consequently a trifle annoyed at be ing kept up so late the guest said nothing that night of where he had been in his room he took out the stone it was not a pebble or a piece of the pavetreut as he had supposed but an oval of grayish lava that had once been a brooch or part of a bracelet as he cleaned it with his penknife and pocket handkerchief he saw that the work upon it was beautiful ; it was a iigure of minerva the very folds in her tunic carefully cut and as he saw by his magnify ing-glass with a light tracery of carving on her helmet and shield on the opposite side just un der the shield was the word violet it was evidently the ower's name but who was she where did she live and when ? the pÂ»n if it were a pin had not lain in its last hiding place long he thought it was not enough stained by the dampness yet he was not sure about that violet might belong to a former generation or might have been sleeping the sleep of the just for a century but sup j pose not suppose she were a young lady beautiful as her name wealthy and high-born well what then homer put out his light and went to bed but not immediately to sleep the affair seemed to promise an ad venture as such it would have been interesting to any young person but ashton in addition to being barely twenty-five had been obliged to make his way for the last ten years ; for though h was of good family dame fortune had started ife with no more than one of . ; ; : ies which however every tiin ra lu turns it as in the legend leaves a gold piece in his hand tiie next morning but one a tall young man with dark hair and eyes ; and expression amused yet resolute ' handed in his card at grantham hall and asked to see its owner sir gres ham laud dr homer ashton cried sir ; gresham looking up from his let ters displeased at the interruption who's he i don't know any such person beryl to the servant what does he look like as well sir gresham only spyer oh spryer is he in his header i his heels i wonder well i sup j pose i must see what the fellow wants one of those genteel sponges come to suck up as many pounds as i'll give to their deuced charities he muttered by which speech it is fair to conclude that sir gresham had been sponged in this way more than once but when homer who was admiring the view from the drawing-room window turned and bowed as the baronet approached sir gresham per ceived nothing of the suppliant about him and began to doubt whether this elegant stranger did mean to make him a few pounds the poorer by his visit he came forward and reques ted his visitor to be seated ashton spoke of the beauty of the country and sir gresham answered him but at the moment curiosity was evident ly his ruling passion you are wondering why i came said homer certainly it was not to tell you what everybody knows that this is the finest situation about here but i have in my possession part of an ornament which i believe be longs to miss laud you what is it ashton bowed and smiled also as he handed the other his discovery of the night but one before does it be long to your daughter lie said but sir gresham was too bewilder to answer him that he cried good heavens ! that where did you find it it's a clew a clew to what ?' cried homer eafrerlv he felt on the brink of dis covering how a lady's ornament could come iu so strange a place but sir gresham was too excited by some suggestion awakened by the sight of the stone to have an idea of trying to satisfy any curiosity but his own where did you find it he re peated is it your daughter's returned homer yes it must be hers and remem bering at last to thank the young man for returning it he stood with the stone in his hand waiting impatiently for a full account of its recovery dues sir gresham laud suppose that i came here for the purpose of telling a midnight adventure to him thought homer a a look of amuse ment flitted across his face if you will be so kind he answered suave ly as to ask miss laud if she will do me the favor to identify her orna ment i shall be most happy to tell you and ask her if she cares to know how i came by it sir gresham hesitated only an in stant assuredly h said and sent for his daughter the young man's heart beat faster at the sound of light steps behind him suppose violet were plain and heavy looking yet suppose â€” he turn ed hastily but not too soon for the beautiful face that was coming to ward him she was named for her eyes thought homer and there was something else lie thought too that could no more than this be spoken at the moment she greeted him with a simplicity that charmed him ; but when she saw the medallion in her father's hand she cried : oh papa my bracelet clasp ; ; where did you get it ? have they ; found out the robbers horaer's eyes opened wide at her words robbers he repeated that's it then perhaps i really did hear i see something after all and after a moment in which three people stoovl facing each other with looks of in quiry he began an account of his ex peditiou to the ruin he was truth ful iu every detail yet the story sounded remarkably well as he told it watching violet's face and seeing her shiver and grow pale in imagin ing the blackness of the old cellars if she would but lo^e him for the dangers he had passed he knew nothing of wars to be sure except of personal struggles with misfortune lout of place to be told here yet hav iug left their mark upon him in a consciousness of power to dare and conquer adverse circumstances i've no doubt they carried their boo ty there exclaimed sir gresham his thoughts still in the ruins an infi nite distance behind the young man's winged fancy and supplementing the narrative which ashton had just finished while violet was listen ing to her father's account of a dar ing burglary committed the winter before while the family were in the house ashton had an opportunity to study her face more critically or rather more admiringly it was pos sible he did not drop all the admira tion out of bis expression as from time to time she turned to him to ex plain more fully something that her father was saying i've no doubt the villians bring their booty miles to hide it in the ruin said sir gresham this me dallion was the clasp of a heavy gold bracelet it was given to my daugh ter by a friend and she is much oblig ed to you i am sure for finding it indeed i am said violet color ing a little as she spoke it is i who am under obligation to fate answered homer ; i have found something that miss laud values the rest of the bracelet has been melted down long ago pursued sir gresham that pjace ought to be searched yes said homer when will you do it ?' the baronet looked somewhat ta ken aback at this energetic sugges tion no doubt he answered and per haps dr ashton you would like to be one of the party if i go with some of my neighbors i suppose it ought to be doue as soon as possible â€” within a day or two he went on as the oth er assented lest they should take alarm at your intrusion upon them when should you advise going this moment cried homer it's a wonder that we americans have any grass in our country he added smiling we are so averse to letting it grow under our feet he met violet's eyes as he finished and read in them an admiration and interest in another moment she had turned away on some trifling pretext but undoubtedly she was blushing how was homer to known that she had once declared she would marry the man who brought her back her bracelet clasp ? that however was when she wa3 quite sure it would never be found not until after luncheon papa will you she said you'd better not take dr ashtou until after that several years later when the me dallion had led to more than the finding of stores of plunder in the old ruins which a gang of thieves had taken care to make appear haunted homer ashton a physician of high standing was living in a large ameri can city a schoelraate whom he had not me for years said to him one day at dinner as they were talking of marriages and deaths among their comrades : by the way ashton you never told me where you first met your wife i only know that it was in england homer laughed i first met her he said behind minerva's shield did i not violet â€” oar continent later advices from eaglfi beak arizo na leave little doubt of the massacre of all the whites and a number of mexicans twenty persons are reported killed at san carlos a skeleton to sit at your banquet 9 ' ____ sax francisco april 26 â€” i a tucson dispatch says : at a meeting of the several thousand citi zens last evening it was unanimous ly decided that the following be iclc graphed as an open letter to the pres ident and his cabinet and to both houses of congress : during the re joicings incident to i he grand milita ry display announced to take place at fortress monroe thursday we beg to offer you a skeleton to sit at your banquet the fact that nearly one hun dred of our pioneers have within a few days been wantonly murdered in , cold blood by the devilish apaches whom a cruel and mistaken policy permits to survive their crimes if some small portion of the expenditure incurred in your grand display could be devoted to such measures as would precluded the probability of an in j crease in the list of our murdered ; dead we could send you greetings of gratitude and cheer in the place of : this message revealing our sorrow helplessness and our desolation sign i ed james ii toole chairman ; l c i hughes secretary killing of a convict news-observer yesterday morning about 10 o'clock nat hill and rufus holesclaw col ored members of a gang of convicts ! employed near the north carolina j railroad bridge south of the city at i tempted to make their escape when called on to halt holesclaw stopped but hill ran at his best speed a i guard whose name is johnston fired | on him and killed him at the first | shot the ball passing entirely through | his body just under the left shoulder ; blade and probably striking the heart he died as soon as he was hit hill was a negro aged 27 years and was from new hanover county his sentence was for six years his crime being larceny lie was placed j in the penitentiary in february last i it was learned yesterday by the au ] thorities that hill had told some of j the other convicts that he had made up his mind to escape and that if he was overtaken o::t>ide the walls lie would either g i away or be killed the proiiis of silk culture mr s a l:nier in an interesting ar i tide in the march number of the indus trial review on silk cui'.'ure as adapted i to the southern states make the fullow j idg statement of the profits that may we ; realized from cocoons the production of ; which will require inly a few weeks at j ten ion rach year : the following estimates will indicate i the profits of silk culture ami based np i on the actual experience f llio^o engag ed in the business one person can at tend to and feed 40,000 silk-worms al though two persons can very easily at tend to 120,000 forty thousand worms will in five or six weeks from the time they are hatched produce at least one hundred and twenty-five pounds of co coons worth from one dollar and one half to two and one-half depending upon the quality owing to the fact that the eggs raised in this country are t'vee from disease it wiil be profitable for many years t come to raise the eggs alone in 18/7 france paid over a million francs for eggs exported from the united slates with a climate especially adapt ed to silk culture and with a great abun dance of the silkworm food at nearly every door and with the fact established beyond any question of doubt that the business is profitable tin people arc blind to their own productive resources if they do not engage in it i lie business enables a class of people the ladies and i children to whom few avenues of em ployment are open to profitably employ their time and add no little to the income of the family we have the name of a lady who made over five hundred dollars last year in silk culture and we think this ought to cause every lady in the south to investigate the subject it is reported that a dialogue some what to the following effect took place between a spectator of the present politi cal trials and mr district attorney mel ton spectator why mr melton ifyou go on getting up your juries in tills way you would convict the apostle paul him self mr melton yes bur if i did not get them up in this way i could not convict judas iscariot this is very clever but it is open to the criticism that mr melton has reversed the old maxim of the common law and obviously thinks it better that eleven innocent men should be convicted than that one guilty one should escape charlatan keifsnndcmtr in dan tfostetfeir fl Â«* celebrated 91 a among ftp me â– ns of m i -â– â€¢. i â€¢-:â€¢ ri - hitters btaods . pre-eminent 1 â– â€¢â– ' â– ''â– â– ' - â– . liver and - tatti reme infi . â– i it 29:1 y /Â§ i " i rhodes bro .'. n ;.. t - . '.'.â– :. c a home company seeking home patronage stroi prompt rebake liferal terra policies ritten on : premiums parable ii huifcasli md bal uonths j allen brown a*t 21.h salisl : ry n c come at once john frick's celebeate1 grain cradles for sale at r r crawford & co's â– remember the dead ! \. monuments tombs ctreat reducticn ix the pricks of marbls monuments and grava-stones of every description i cordially invite tlic public generally to an inspection of my stock and work i feel justified in asserting tlial my past experience under lii.-t c!;i>n workmen in i!i the newest and modern styles and that the workmanship is eqnal to any of the best in tin country i not say tiiat my work is superior to all other i m:i reasonable will noi exaggerate in or der to accomplish a sale m endeavor is to please and give eacli customei tlie val ue of every dollar they leave with me prices 35 to 50 per ce:it cheaper than ever offered in this town before call ai once or send for price list and de signs satisfaction < uaraut'd or no charge the erection ol marble is the lasl work of respect which we pay to the meniory ot depai ted i iends john s hutchinson salihbnry n c nov i l~-l dldbillldl aiill liuiiilulkiuu attorneys counselors and solicitors salisbury n.c janoay22 1879 â€” tt mohit savidj^mphiy hadi : vi oea n ' hasnohoust at uor store rent tohirr tii can sell low gjio j l wkniut tor cheap sucuaabaeon lard i :â– â€¢â€¢â€¢, m lasses and s*j ruiÂ»s i i i â– . krults i mri eij j â€¢ l w r i c h t established in the yeab 1832 price 1.60 tn advance bt keqcest.j l,if in the south sch'ooliuates and friends if you will lis ten to me 1 will tell you of sights worth i sixpence to see my story originated in the far sunny south where the people are happy w flood or in drouth where t lie wild flowers grow from the mountains to the sea the laud of the brave and hie home of the free hut now to my story for i think it i time aud to add to tny glory i will tell it in i in me one night in december never miiid the date same farmers met at their school house in the old north state the oldest man of the number was called to preside : yoji would hare thought him a beecher lie looked so diynitied j th chief orator of the house was called to the tlihir and said the bjeet of the meeting was in defense of the poor in his eloqueut speech he tried tocxplain how his old woman had tried to raise ciiickeus but found il in vain he attributed the cause to the hawks and the owls which had become so numerous as to destroy all his fowls his wheat be said would be totally lost the ravage by rabbits was worse than by frost while the corn in the held never could grow rtfore it was up it was eaten by the crow the only true method of destroying the pests was to cut oft their heads and tear up their nests for this purpose they formed two bands to scalp every every hawk found upon their lands each company numbered fifteen strong and each hail a captain to lead them along the law affirmed that the company that wan brat oil the first day of new year had the other to treat then the armies disbanded each man to his post to fight for his captain against the ene my's host the ncÂ«ts were hunted from fir and from near â€” any time you would listen a gun you might hear they hunted at night as well as in day for they knew if beaten they had the for feit to pay the carnage was dreadful and so it is said that the rabbits awoke with no scalp for their heads on the first of new year at the dawn of day the fanners came in from most every way the scalps were then counted but i can't tell you the rest for they had enough to till the teacher's desk ; the teacher was angry but he said not a word of their doings on new year he had al ready heard the scalps remained in the desk day alter da.v and the pupils would laugh and have much to say until one little fellow more wicked than the rest was ordered to remove every scalp from the desk believe me or not i assure you tis a fact h carried out seventeen loads in liishnt and at last overcome by fatigue and by woe he measured himself full length in tlie snow but the school house was haunted i tell you tis true the victims assemble done night to see what they could do one offered the resolution and the vote passed around â€¢ and they unanimously agreed to burn the house down and on the ne^xt morn no house could bo found nothing but ashes lay scattered around ; and now eu